*~* The Girl Behind The Mystic Realm: Mary Shaw *~*

*~* The Mystic Realm *~* webpages were a lot of fun for me to create! I will keep on updating the pages in the future as I find the time and as inspiration hits me between my eyes. *OUCH*

A little bit about myself...

The Basics________________

Name: Mary Shaw
Age: 20-ish
Location: Canada
Education: Psychology Honours B.A.
Current Full-Time Job Position: Writer & Project Manager
On-the-Side Job Position: Freelance Web Designer & Developer
Dream Career: Writer or Novelist

Say Cheese!_______________

Now, I've been getting lots of requests for photographs of me on the site. For those of you who must know what I look like, picture the most beautiful female you can think of. I probably look something like her...haha...Just kidding! Well, I prefer to be beautiful on the inside, since *wink* that's where it really counts. If, however, your curiosity gets the better of you, here is a picture of myself. I hope you have a good sense of humour! Don't drool too much.

My Passive Psychologist______

I write quite frequently in my offline diary (my passive psychologist) because it relaxes me and helps me to figure out problems. In addition to providing me with much-needed laughter, it helps me to uncover my deeper side. I made a collage for the front and back cover of it way back in 2000. The diary was just a plain Hilroy spiral bound 5 subject notebook. Below are pictures of my old offline diary. Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge each picture to get a better view. Oh and I know that people are going to ask, so I'll say it right here: There are no pictures of myself on the images below. That woman with the flowers in her hair is not me.

[They open up in separate windows]

Outstanding Literature________

My Favourite Author: Mary Shelley
My Favourite Book: Frankenstein (the original 1818 edition)

2007 Reading List:
(NEW Rating System: 1 = easy to put down, 10 = excellent page-turner)

FEBRUARY
- Everything About Me Is Fake...and I'm Perfect by Janice Dickinson (6/10)
- Animal Farm by George Orwell (8/10)

2006 Reading List:
(Rating System: 1 = easy to put down, 5 = excellent page-turner)

MARCH
- Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress: Tales of Growing Up Groovy and Clueless by Susan Jane Gilman (5/5)

APRIL
- Kiss My Tiara: How to Rule the World as a Smartmouth Goddess by Susan Jane Gilman (3.75/5)

AUGUST
- The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger (2.75/5)

OCTOBER
- No Lifeguard on Duty: The Accidental Life of the World's First Supermodel by Janice Dickinson (3.75/5)

2005 Reading List:
(Rating System: 1 = easy to put down, 5 = excellent page-turner)

FEBRUARY
- Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos (1.5/5)

MARCH
- The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcom X (as told to Alex Haley) (3.5/5)

APRIL
- The Sweet Hereafter by Russell Banks (4/5)
- Double Indemnity by James M. Cain (3/5)

MAY
- Camera Politica by Michael Ryan and Douglas Kellner (2/5)
- Media Culture: Cultural Studies, Identity and Politics Between the Modern and the Postmodern by Douglas Kellner (3/5)
- Consuming Environments: Television and Commercial Culture by Mike Budd, Clay Steinman, and Clayton M. Steinman (3.5/5)

JUNE
- The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (4.5/5)

JULY
- Angels & Demons by Dan Brown (3/5)

AUGUST
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (3.75/5)

NOVEMBER
- Mental Floss magazine, Nov/Dec 2005 (5/5)

Below is a list of my favourite books of all time in no particular order:

Frankenstein (the original 1818 edition) - by Mary Shelley
Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress: Tales of Growing Up Groovy and Clueless - by Susan Jane Gilman
To Kill a Mockingbird - by Harper Lee
The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive Edition - by Anne Frank
The Neverending Story - by Michael Ende
Flowers For Algernon - by Daniel Keyes
Pippi Longstocking - by Astrid Lindgren
The Last Man - by Mary Shelley
Saint Joan - by George Bernard Shaw
Go Ask Alice - by Anonymous
Discoveries and Opinions of Galileo - translated & edited by Stillman Drake
Anne of Green Gables - by L.M. Montgomery
Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone - by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire - by J.K. Rowling
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - by L. Frank Baum
The Marvellous Land of Oz - by L. Frank Baum
Ozma of Oz - by L. Frank Baum
The Road to Oz - by L. Frank Baum
The Magician's Nephew - by C.S. Lewis
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - by C.S. Lewis
The Silver Chair - by C.S. Lewis
The Last Battle - by C.S. Lewis
Friendship Bracelets - by Camilla Gryski
Charlotte's Web - by E.B. White
His Bright Light: the Story of Nick Traina - by Danielle Steel
A Woman's Book of Life: The Biology, Psychology, and Spirituality of the Feminine Life Cycle - by Joan Borysenko (Ph.D.)
The Da Vinci Code - by Dan Brown

Click here to read my detailed book recommendation list

What You'll See Me Doing______

There are plenty of things that I like to do, but among them are the following: smile (sometimes even snort uncontrollably and embarrassingly...*blush*), walk in the park, shop in the mall, hang out with friends, surf the Internet, work on my websites, write, and read.

Subjects Tickling the Brain_____

I am fascinated with English, psychology, marketing, spirituality, biology, and sociology.

Little Miss Not-So-Perfect______

No one is perfect and I am no exception. I tend to procrastinate a lot more than I'd like and I am a huge (and I mean HUGE) fan of sleeping in. I have a dichotomous personality and only those who earn my trust and friendship get to discover how I can be wild and crazy, but other times, shy and introspective.

Colour Me a Rainbow_________

While I like most colours, currently, my favourite "colour" is black. I say "colour" because black really is a non-colour. (No, I'm not a goth and besides, even goths don't always wear all black nowadays.)

The Aspiring Writer In Me______

Ever since I was little, I loved to read and write. I tend to write a lot in general and yes, I keep a personal diary. I enjoy concocting stories in my free time and I have written a 30-paged psychological screenplay called "It's All In Your Head". I also really love writing letters. I love the human element of seeing something handwritten. Currently, I'm working on a novel that is loosely based on my screenplay. So far, I've written over 10,000 words and that's just for the first chapter.

Life is a Melody______________

Music is a huge part of my life. I actually don't really have a favourite music genre because I listen to pretty much everything. Click here to see what I mean. That link has a list of SOME of my favourite songs. Check this list again because I'm always "discovering" new songs that I like and I add them to my favourite song list. Anyway, I not only like to LISTEN to music, but I love to PLAY music on musical instruments. Further proving my ultimate geekdom (hehe), I used to be in the junior and senior band at my highschool up until I left for university. I also used to take piano lessons when I was in gradeschool.

Instruments I can play:

* Clarinet
* Flute
* Saxophone
* Piano
* Wood Recorder

I'm currently learning how to play the acoustic guitar (FINALLY!!!).

Couch Potato_______________

Favourite television shows of all time in no particular order:

* Gilmore Girls
* Felicity
* The Cosby Show
* Columbo
* What Not to Wear
* The Simpsons
* The Mole 2: The Next Betrayal
* Whose Line Is It Anyways?
* Ripley's Believe It Or Not
* Skin Deep
* The Shopping Bags

Inspiring/Fun Movies_________

My favourite movies of all time in no particular order:

* The Wizard of Oz
* What Dreams May Come
* The Neverending Story (the 1st one only)
* Corpse Bride
* Joan of Arc (the 1999 version with LeeLee Sobieski and Peter O'Toole)
* Pleasantville
* Awakenings
* Anne of Green Gables
* The Goonies
* Lean On Me
* Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
* West Side Story
* The Sound of Music
* Alice in Wonderland
* The Matrix
* Singin' in the Rain

Live to Love________________

I love many things in life...In fact, I had to create a separate page just to list them all! *Smile* Click here to find out what I love!

Wishes Can Come True________

Okay, we all have wishes and dreams in life. Some are realistic and some are far-fetched. I have both types and if you'd like to read my list, please click here.

The Quote That I Live By_____

I can't remember when it was that I came up with the quote. It seems like ages ago! It is "Spread the sunshine." I enjoy promoting happiness and all things positive.

Little Girl At Heart__________

I really like those 1980's cartoons such as Rainbow Brite, Smurfs, Pound Puppies, Care Bears, Wuzzles, Popples, Strawberry Shortcake, etc. I guess there's a little kid in all of us. *Wink* Thank goodness for that!

All you have ever wanted to know about me can be found here